John sat nervously with his family in the waiting room. Stacy was taken back for her surgery nearly 2 hours ago, and the waiting was starting to get to him.
"Let's take a small walk," London suggested suddenly. "Just up the hallway." After some convincing, John finally agreed.
"Johnny, I know this is nerve racking, but you have to think, this is an operation on her heart. They want to take their time to make sure they don't mess anything up."
"I know," John sighed, stopping to lean against a wall. "I can't help but to worry though. She's my little sister."
"She's strong John, she'll make it through all of this and come out better than before."
"What makes you sound so certain?" John asked.
"Well, you said it yourself," London replied as though it was the most obvious answer. "She's your little sister, so if she's anything like you, she's bull-headed, stubborn, and just plain determined to succeed." John couldn't help but to smile at the woman in front of him. She was beautiful, inside and out. Her light hazel eyes always sparkled with light and love for everything she does. John knew he was falling for his "personal chef," he just didn't realize how hard until this very moment. She was always there for him, and she never asked for anything in return.
"London," John started, but was cut off as his brother Sean walked down the hallway.
"Hey, she's out of surgery," Sean announced. "The doctor is waiting to have everyone in the room before he says anymore."
"Let's go then," John said, grabbing London's hand and leading her back down the hallway.
"The surgery went very well, it will just take some time for Ms. Cena to recover," the man in the scrubs was saying as the three entered the room.
"How much time?" Dan asked. John noticed he was gripping his wife Caprice's hand.
"Depending on how fast of a healer she is, along if there are no complications and she follows her rehabilitation schedule. I would venture to say about six months, give or take a few days."
"Can we go see her?" Carol asked.
"She's still under the anesthesia, and we have to get her into a recovery room. So when we get her into her room, we'll let you in, but only two at a time for right now. We don't want to overwhelm her."
"Of course not," Carol shook her head.
"I gotta go let Nick know," John spoke up. He walked to the outside of the hospital with London following him.
"Put him on speaker," London instructed as they sat on a bench.
Nick was broken from his trance in the locker room when he heard a phone going off.
"Nick, it's your phone!" AJ called to him from the other side of the room. Nick quickly jumped up and grabbed his phone, flipping it open without even checking to see who was calling.
"John?" He answered, praying it was Stacy's brother.
"And London," A female voice greeted him from the other side.
"Hey Nick…"
"Hang on a sec," Nick said, putting his own phone of speaker. "The guys want to know what's going on with Stacy too. I figured it would be better to just put the phone on speaker."
"Okay, she's out of surgery. The doctor said it went well and depending on how fast she heals and if the rehab works out, she'll be out for about six months."
"That'll drive her crazy," Nick couldn't stop himself from muttering. "When does she get home?"
"As of right now, no idea," London replied. "Like John said, it all depends on how fast she heals and if there are any complications."
"She made it through the hard part," Brian spoke up.
"I hope you're right Brian. Don't forget, you were the one who had the surgery done." John pointed out.
"Here, I'll give you my house number and you can talk to my wife. She'll remember more from that time than I would, and she can tell you what to expect during the early recovery stage."
"Thanks Brian," John said as London pulled out her phone. She added the number to her contacts.
"Hey John, I'll be going home for a couple days after the tour to take care of things, but I'll be there as soon as I can."
"You can stay with us if you want," John said. "We don't live too far from my parents' house which is where Stacy will be staying."
"Sounds like a plan. I'll call you and let you know when I'm on my way."
"Will do," John said. They hung up the phone, and John decided to wait to call Brian's wife when he was with his parents so they could hear what she had to say.
Nick was putting his phone back in his pocket just as it started ringing again. He pulled it back out and looked at the screen. The others noticed the fury in his eyes right away. He ignored the caller, but couldn't ignore the curiosity and worry in the stares he was receiving.
"My mother," he explained. "I've told her I don't know how many times I can't deal with her petty problems right now but she keeps on calling." Nick sat back in the chair he was in, his eyes distanced. "That's what I have to take care of when the tour ends. I can't go up and focus on helping Stacy if she keeps calling and giving me some cockabull story."
"We're proud of you Nick," Howie said suddenly. "You've really grown up a lot since we started all of this."
"Yeah, back when we made it big you wouldn't have thought twice. You would have swallowed whatever she told you and did what she wanted you to do."
"I was sixteen," Nick shrugged. "Legally she could pull me from the group if I didn't listen to her. I'm an adult now, and I need to start acting like it."
"You're still pretty young Nick, so don't go too boring yet." AJ said, causing Nick to chuckle slightly.
"I don't think boring is possible out of me anymore." Nick replied honestly. "I'm too hyper most of the time, and Stacy has just as much energy." The door opened just then and Aaron walked into the room, Malia right behind him.
"What are you two doing here?" Nick asked, standing up and forcing Lia to sit down. He could see she was filling out more, so he knew she would start getting pressure on her back.
"Just thought we would finish the tour out with you guys, if you'll allow us," Aaron answered.
"Are you sure you're up for that Lia?" Howie asked.
"I'm pregnant guys, no big deal. I've been stuck in bed for weeks with morning sickness anyway. I need to get out of the house and there's what, only four more days of the tour left? I'll be fine."
"If you say so," Brian shrugged. Nick's phone rang again and Aaron noticed the annoyance flash across his brother's eyes.
"Mom?" Aaron asked as Nick looked at the phone.
"Of course," Nick replied, rolling his eyes. He decided to answer this time. He ignored the last three waiting on word about Stacy and he knew his mother would keep going until he answered. He walked to the other side of the room for privacy, knowing Aaron was watching him leave.
"He's planning on going and confronting her about this," AJ told Aaron. "Before he goes to Stacy after the tour is over."
"He needs to, if he wants a quiet life," Aaron replied, turning to the older man. "What do you guys think about him and Stacy?"
"I see them going all the way," Lia said. "I know them both and they're just too perfect together."
"I don't know, they both have faults that isn't good for anyone to have in a relationship, like not talking about when something bothers them. Not telling someone when something goes wrong." Brian said.
"I think if anything will be a deal breaker, it's the person he's on the phone with," Aaron said suddenly. "Like I said, as long as he puts up with everything her and Leslie throws at him, he won't live a quiet life. If he and Stacy even want a chance of making it, then they need to get the other two under control and quick."
"I thought things were better with Leslie," Howie asked.
"It is better, but she still sticks up for Mom from time to time."
"I thought Nick already said something to her," Lia commented.
"He did over the phone, apparently it didn't work." Aaron replied. "I guess it has to be in person."
"Old habits die hard Aaron, you know that," Nick sighed, sitting on the arm of the chair he put Lia in.
"What does she want this time?" Aaron asked, ignoring Nick's comment.
"Same as usual," Nick grumbled. "Four more days though, and I hopefully won't have to worry about it anymore."